This proposal requests partial support for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to attend an international meeting on neuroethology as part of the Gordon Research Conference series. The meeting will be held at Stonehill College, Massachusetts, USA, August 14-19, 2011, and will be preceded by a Gordon Research Seminar (August 13-14) developed specifically for graduate students and postdoctoral researchers. The long-term goal of this ongoing conference is to increase our understanding of the development, function, and evolution of neural circuits. The 2011 meeting features several sessions that investigate how animals live in their species-specific sensory worlds. The key question: Can we use our understanding of sensory systems to link neuroscience and ecology? The specific aim of this meeting is to convene leaders representing the forefront of neuroethology research for a 5 day conference in an academic setting selected to foster interaction. The organizers of the Gordon Research Seminar and the Gordon Research Conference will target financial support to minorities underrepresented in science, and will give priority to graduate students and postdoctoral fellows attending their first Gordon Research Conference. The broader impact of the Gordon Research Seminar will be the creation of an opportunity for graduate students and postdoctoral researchers to discuss the present and the future of neuroethology in an open, informal atmosphere that will prepare young scientists to derive maximum benefit from the full Gordon Research Conference that follows.
The Gordon Research Conference on NEUROETHOLOGY: BEHAVIOR, EVOLUTION & NEUROBIOLOGY was held at Stonehill College, Easton, Massachusetts, August 14 – 19, 2011. The Conference was well-attended with 121 participants (attendees list attached). The attendees represented the spectrum of endeavor in this field coming from academia, industry, and government laboratories, both U.S. and foreign scientists, senior researchers, young investigators, and students. Of the 121 attendees, 57 voluntarily responded to a general inquiry regarding ethnicity which appears on our registration forms. Of the 57 respondents, 18% were Minorities – 0% Hispanic, 2% Asian and 0% African American. Approximately 42% of the participants at the 2011 meeting were women. The Gordon Research Seminar on NEUROETHOLOGY: BEHAVIOR, EVOLUTION & NEUROBIOLOGY was held at Stonehill College, Easton, Massachusetts, August 13 – 14, 2011. The Conference was well-attended with 43 participants (attendees list attached). The attendees represented the spectrum of endeavor in this field coming from academia, industry, and government laboratories, both U.S. and foreign scientists, senior researchers, young investigators, and students. Of the 43 attendees, 20 voluntarily responded to a general inquiry regarding ethnicity which appears on our registration forms. Of the 20 respondents, 5% were Minorities – 0% Hispanic, 5% Asian and 0% African American. Approximately 51% of the participants at the 2011 meeting were women. In designing the formal speakers program, emphasis was placed on current unpublished research and discussion of the future target areas in this field. There was a conscious effort to stimulate lively discussion about the key issues in the field today. Time for formal presentations was limited in the interest of group discussions. In order that more scientists could communicate their most recent results, poster presentation time was scheduled. Attached is a copy of the formal schedule and speaker program and the poster program. In addition to these formal interactions, "free time" was scheduled to allow informal discussions. Such discussions are fostering new collaborations and joint efforts in the field.
